


A Little Surprise

by WanderingAlice



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Birthday Party, Fluff, M/M, Pets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-26
Updated: 2014-06-26
Packaged: 2018-02-06 07:32:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1849693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WanderingAlice/pseuds/WanderingAlice
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bucky enlists Natasha and Sam to help him give Steve the best birthday ever.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Little Surprise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [owlet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/owlet/gifts).



> For owlet, who helped me out with an important bit of Comitatus, and requested Nat, Sam and Bucky planning Steve's birthday party. It veered a little off course, but I hope you enjoy it!!
> 
> I was going to finish this after a few more chapters of Comitatus were done, but then the idea dragged me into writing the whole thing in one go.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading!! <3

“Hey, Nat, what’s the date today?” Bucky asked, staring at the blank page in front of him. His therapist had insisted he start a journal, but, seriously, what was he supposed to write about? All he did was sit around the Avenger’s tower all day, with Steve if Steve wasn’t on a mission, or one of the agents if he was. Not that he really needed a babysitter anymore, he was almost better, but apparently Fury and Coulson were both paranoid. Bucky supposed he _could_ write about the things in his head, the nightmares, the memories, but those were things he only trusted Steve with. He didn’t want his therapist knowing him that well, and he certainly didn’t want to put them on paper where anyone could read it. Steve might have been able to help him figure out what to write, but he was off on an assignment with Fury.

“Hmm?” Natasha looked up from where she was carefully painting her nails. She was today’s babysitter, which was better than normal, since he actually liked her. “Today’s… June 28th.”

Bucky sat up straight. “ _June_ 28 th? Really?”

“Yeah…” She raised an eyebrow at him. “Why? You got a date or something?”

Bucky shook his head. “No, it’s just…” he stared at the paper. There was something... something important, something _very_ important he had to do, and soon. What was it? June, no not June, but July. July was Steve’s birthday. July was Steve’s birthday, and he hadn’t gotten him a present yet. That was it! He needed to get Steve a birthday present. And he had less than a week to do it.

“Hey, Nat, do me a favor?” He gave her his best grin. Maybe he didn’t have Steve’s big honest eyes, but his grin could be just as charming. Though, apparently, not this time. Natasha frowned at him.

“That depends. What do you need?”

“Well, I haven’t had an episode in weeks, and I’m pretty sure it’s just me in my head now, so-”

“This had better not end with you asking me to sneak you out of the tower, Barnes,” she told him.

Bucky pouted. “But, it’s important. Really, _really_ important. For Steve.”

“What is it? Maybe I can go out and do it for you,” Nat offered. It was nice of her, but no. This was too important for that.

“Thanks, but this is something I need to do myself. It’s Steve’s birthday next week, and, well, I want to get him something special.”

Natasha frowned, screwing the top back on her nail polish bottle. “So you’re asking me to break you out to go shopping?”

Bucky considered her words, then shrugged. “I guess so. Though I wouldn’t exactly term it shopping…” There was something Steve had always wanted. Something he couldn’t have before, but now, now Bucky could get it for him.

The woman across from him slowly nodded. “Ok. I’m not sneaking you out. But I’ll see what I can do. I guess you have been good lately.”

 

“No.” Director Coulson shook his head. “He hasn’t been cleared yet.”

“He hasn’t had an episode in two months, sir,” Nat argued. “And he’s been interacting with everyone in the tower in a perfectly normal way. I think he’s ready. I’ll be with him the whole time.”

“He’s still having the nightmares,” Coulson pointed out. “And we haven’t seen him in an area with a lot of people. It could trigger something.”

“To be fair,” Bucky said, from where he was sitting on the couch behind them, seemingly forgotten while they argued. “Half those screams you’re hearing on the feed are from Steve.” The turned to stare at him. “What? You think he doesn’t get nightmares too? God, you guys really did a _shit_ job of taking care of him before I got back.” He shoved down the anger and resentment there, they’d only seen the super-soldier, they hadn’t seen _Steve_ , hadn’t realized he was a normal human underneath all that muscle. Hadn’t seen what waking up in the future, alone, had been doing to him. Bucky had been doing his best to make it better ever since he regained his memories. Some days were harder than others.

“Be that as it may, you are still not cleared to be out in public.” Coulson looked a little shocked, and sad. Steve had mentioned that the guy had been a bit of a fanboy, he probably took the realization that Steve wasn’t as alright as he seemed as a personal failure.

“I don’t want to be anywhere crowded,” Bucky told him. “Just one stop, and then right back to the tower,” he promised.

“Hmm…” Coulson frowned, considering, and Bucky knew he had him.

“Please?”

The director sighed. “Where exactly do you want to go?”

“The local animal shelter,” Bucky said firmly. Nat blinked at him.

“The _animal shelter_?” she asked.

Bucky nodded. This would be the perfect gift for Steve.

 

They got permission, but only if another agent also accompanied them. Coulson decided it would be safest that way, and a good test to see if Bucky could handle public. They might even see about clearing him for more outings, if this went well. It was as much as he could have hoped for.

“So, you want me to come with you to an animal shelter for, why, again?” Sam Wilson asked, frowning at them both. Nat had called him up to the tower as soon as they got back from the meeting with Coulson.

“To get a birthday present for Steve,” Bucky said patiently. He already knew Sam would agree, he was a good guy, and he seemed to genuinely care about all of the Avengers, especially Steve.

“It’s Steve’s birthday?” he looked towards the calendar Steve had put up on the wall, but nothing was marked ‘Steve’s Birthday’ on it.

“Yeah,” Bucky nodded. “On the 4th.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Sam smiled. “Of course he would be born on the 4th.”

Natasha grinned. “It certainly is appropriate. I wonder why he never said?”

“I don’t think he liked to remember,” Bucky told them. “When he woke up, another birthday just meant another year removed from everything he’d ever known. I’m hoping this year will be different, though.”

“Hell, yeah!” Sam agreed. “We’re gonna give him the best birthday he’s ever had.”

“Nothing too big,” Bucky warned. “He’s never been much for big parties.”

“So that means nobody tells Stark until the day of,” Nat said. Sam nodded.

“Yeah, I saw the pictures from that thing he tried to do for Banner last year. Not pretty.”

Bucky winced. He’d seen those pictures too. Poor Bruce, Steve said he’d vanished for a little while after that, coming back a few months later from someplace in Africa. The consensus was never to let Tony throw a party, he tended to blow things all out of proportion.

“How about just a quiet dinner,” Bucky suggested. “Friends and family only.”

“Sounds good,” Natasha said. “So just the Avengers, Pepper, Jane, Darcy, and maybe a few of the SHIELD agents? Sharon, Coulson, and Maria. Maybe Nick, if he’s around.”

“What about me?” Sam asked.

“I think she counted you with the Avengers, pal,” Bucky told him. “I think right now, you and me are unofficial Avengers.”

“Oh. Ok, good.” Sam grinned. “Man, I’m a superhero! That’s so awesome.”

“You’ll get used to it,” Nat told him. “We all did.”

“So, what should we do for the party? I’m guessing he’d probably prefer something here rather than going out,” Sam said, looking at the large kitchen in Steve and Bucky’s apartment.

“How about we ask everyone to bring something and have dinner together? I’ve heard Clint makes great steaks,” Bucky suggested.

Natasha nodded. “Yeah, he does. I could probably figure out something, too. And Bruce is actually a really good cook, he makes this thing with green beans and mushrooms and garlic that is to die for.”

Sam hummed, thinking. “I could probably bring my mom’s famous cottage potatoes.”

Bucky’s stomach grumbled just at the thought. “Those are the ones with the all the cheese, right? Yes. Bring that. Steve loves those.”

Nat laughed. “I don’t think he’s the only one. Better make a double-batch, Sam.”

Sam laughed too. “Sure thing. So what about you, Bucky? What will you cook?”

Normally, Bucky would be at a loss. He couldn’t cook worth a damn- when it was his turn to make the food on missions, one of the Commandos or Steve had always traded with him. After all, he was the one that exploded the milk on accident. But this time, he had something he could do. Something he’d done every year since he could remember.

“I’m making the cake. I used to do it for Steve back in the 30’s, after his mom got sick and couldn’t anymore.” He remembered Steve’s smile that first year, when the cake was kind of a disaster, but he’d been so happy. He said he would have been happy with anything, just because Bucky had made it for him. The next year, Bucky had worked hard for a month before his birthday, learning how to make a proper cake. Over the years, he’d actually gotten pretty good at it. Now, while he still couldn’t cook, he could actually bake fairly well. Sharon Carter had even been giving him lessons when it was her turn to babysit him. Said it was a kind of therapy.  

“So, just dinner, or should we do anything else?” Sam asked.

Bucky thought about it for a minute, then shook his head. “Nah. He’ll be happiest if we just all hang out. I remember Dum Dum and Morita tried to throw him this huge party once, and, while he pretended to be happy about it, he was really kinda freaked out. We went out to the bars and they tried to get him drunk, or get him to hook up with some local dames. I could tell he was just about ready to bolt when Peggy came looking for us- Hydra attack. Steve just leaned over to me and said “Oh thank god.” The next year we were on a mission during his birthday, but we had a quiet dinner, just the Commandos. He told me later it was his best birthday ever.”

For a minute, Bucky got lost in his own head. He hadn’t remembered that day until he started to tell the story, but the memory slid into place, exactly where it was supposed to be. That was happening less and less recently, as he reclaimed himself. This had been the first time that week. Nat and Sam didn’t seem to notice, or if they did, they just let him do his thing, for which he was grateful.

When he came back to the conversation Natasha was saying “So, now that we’ve got the menu and the guest list all planned out, what next?”

Bucky shrugged. “Can’t think there’s much left to do. How about we go get that gift now?”

Sam and Nat looked at each other, then back at him.

“I’ll go get the car,” Sam said. “We’ve still got a few hours before the shelter closes for the day.”

 

“Want to tell us exactly why we’re getting Steve’s gift at the animal shelter?” Natasha asked, once they were in the car, Sam driving. Bucky supposed that was fair- she _was_ getting him out of the tower for this after all.

“Well, see, Steve’s always wanted a dog. But he was allergic, something about the fur made him sneeze. So he’d just watch other people with dogs with this sad look on his face. I promised him, if he ever got over his allergy, we’d get one.

“The serum cured the allergy, along with his asthma and everything else. But then we were in the war, so, no dogs. We talked about it, though. About how, when we got back to the States, after the war was over, we’d settle down in our apartment and get a dog. Steve said he wanted to get a special-needs dog, because he knew they have a harder time finding homes. I figured, hey, why not. I mean, I’m more of a cat person, but whatever makes Steve happy.”

“Oh my god, you two were so married, even back then!” Natasha said, laughing. Bucky resisted the urge to stick his tongue out at her.

“ _Anyway_ ,” he continued, speaking over her. “I figure, since we’ve got a fairly permanent home and jobs, it’s time. We’ve got that big old apartment and all, more than enough room.”

“Yep, Nat’s right,” Sam was grinning. “You two are totally married. And now you’re taking the next step- kids! Well, a dog, but for some people it’s kind of the same thing.”

“I’m ignoring you,” Bucky told them. “See, I can’t hear anything you’re saying.” He resolutely ignored them for the rest of the ride, even when they started taking bets on when Steve would pop the question.

When they got to the shelter, Bucky led the way inside, excited to finally be doing this. The girl at the counter looked up, and her eyes went wide.

“C- can I help you?” she asked, hands tugging at her clothes to straighten them. She bit her lip when she saw a stain on the shirt and scrubbed ineffectually at it. She glanced back up at them shyly, and he recognized the look in her eyes.

“Actually, yeah, you can,” Bucky flashed her his best smile, trying to put the poor girl at ease. He’d seen guys in the army act like that around Steve, but it had never been directed at him before. It made him feel a little uncomfortable. “My partner and I are looking to adopt a dog with special needs. Do you have any that need a good home?”

“I- uh, yeah. We do. Have dogs, that is.” She climbed down from the stool she’d been sitting on and came out from around the counter. “Um, would you like to see?”

Bucky looked at Sam and Natasha for help, not at all comfortable with making the kid nervous, but they gave him identical amused looks. Spooky.

“Yeah, I would, uh, what’s your name?” He tried to think about what Steve would do in this type of situation. He had a way of putting people at ease, even when he was being incredibly awkward.

“Elly, sir. Elizabeth.”

“Ok, then, Elly, please show me the dogs?”

She nodded, leading the way past several large cages filled with cats to a door in the back of the room. They could hear barking coming from behind it, a sound that intensified when she opened the door. She led them past rows of cages, pointing out specific dogs, becoming more at ease as they went on. At last, they came to a cage, and Bucky looked in, and _knew_.

The dog inside was a possibly a golden retriever, albeit the smallest, skinniest golden retriever he’d ever seen. She looked up at him sadly with one large brown eye, and when he stuck his hand in through the bars, she gently licked it. Bucky knelt down in front of the cage and watched as she heaved herself to her feet, limping forward on three legs to stick her nose against his palm.

“That’s Kate,” Elly said, a sad smile on her lips. “She was brought a few months ago by animal rescue. Her owner had neglected her, but what drew their attention was when he accidentally hit her with his car and just left her in the driveway. Bastard claimed he hadn’t even noticed her there. It took weeks just to get her up to a somewhat normal weight, and we couldn’t save the leg or her eye.” Bucky noticed she clenched her hands unconsciously as she spoke about Kate’s previous owner, and the anger in her voice promised no good should the man she was talking about ever cross her path.

“Poor girl,” he reached out, scratching her ears with his metal hand. “You’re just like me, see? We’ve got to stick together, you and I. What do you say, huh? Want to come home with me and meet Steve?”

As if in answer, Kate gave a soft yip and licked his hand again.

They filled out the paperwork soon after that, and Bucky listened carefully to Elly’s instructions on the special care Kate would need. They couldn’t take her home that day, the vet still needed to give her one more checkup, but that worked out, since there was no telling when Steve would be back from his mission, and Bucky wanted Kate to be a surprise. He gladly paid the adoption fee and fronted enough money that the vet could give her all the necessary shots during her checkup. She’d been spayed already, thankfully, so they didn’t have to worry about that. Finally, they made arraignments for Natasha to come pick her up on the 4th of July. Usually the shelter was closed for the holiday, but Elly promised to be there specifically for them.

Then, as Bucky finished saying goodbye to Kate for the time being (and he was already in love with the beautiful pup, he didn’t want to leave her, even for a few days,) Elly put a hand on his arm. She swiftly withdrew it when he looked at her, looking a little shocked at her own boldness. But, she’d made the gesture, and obviously steeled herself to say whatever it was she wanted him to hear.

“You’re Sargent Barnes, right? Captain Roger’s partner?”

Bucky nodded. There’d been a press conference, once he’d been deemed stable enough (over vid-screen only, no actual reporters in the room with him,) and he’d been introduced to the world as Steve’s partner.

“Can I… can I have your autograph?” Elly asked, and he noticed the pen and pad of paper in her hand.

“Tell you what,” he took it, signing it with a flourish. “I’ll do you one better, seeing as you’re helping us out so much. I’ll get a picture with Steve and we’ll both sign it for you. Nat can drop it off when she comes to get Kate. How does that sound?”

The girl gasped, accepting her pad back with trembling hands. “I- wow. Thank you, sir. Really. Thank you. I can’t believe… wow.”

“Looks like you’ve got a fan,” Natasha said, as they left the shelter and headed back to the tower.

“Shut up,” Bucky told her, but his words didn’t have any real bite to them.

 

July 3rd arrived, and Steve still hadn’t returned from his mission. Natasha took matters into her own hands, calling Fury and demanding he bring Steve back by the 4th. Of course, Fury had wanted to know why, so she’d sworn him to secrecy and told him about the party. After the conversation, she told Bucky that Steve would be back. Fury would bring him straight to the tower, instead of the usual hours of debriefings. And he would call when they were close, so they’d have time to get everything together to surprise Steve when he walked in.

The next day, everyone arrived early. They had an abundance of food, from Bruce’s green bean thing to the chicken casserole Pepper brought that smelled heavenly. Tony had even contributed a bottle of fine wine, claiming he couldn’t really cook. They set everything up, and settled in to wait. That was when Tony had seen the small pile of presents on the table.

“Wait, what’s with the presents? Nobody told me to bring presents!”

Pepper gave him a look. “It’s Steve’s birthday. We didn’t tell you, because you’d have turned it into a huge thing, like the fiasco last year.”

“I thought we agreed never to speak of that again,” Tony said. “And I’m hurt. You could have at least told me to bring a gift!”

“Relax,” Pepper rested a hand on his arm. “I got one from both of us.”

“Oh, good,” Tony smiled at her. “What was it?”

Pepper pointed to the large box at the bottom of the pile. “It’s a self-refilling dog water and food bowl.”

Tony looked confused. “Why would they need that?” he asked.

Nat grinned. “For the dog Bucky got Steve for his birthday.”

Before Tony could reply to that, Nat’s phone rang. She picked it up. “Natasha. Uh-huh. Yeah. Ok. See you soon.” She put it back in her pocket. “Nick’s here. He’s bringing Steve down now.”

They all scrambled to hide, Bucky diving behind the couch just before the door opened and Steve stepped through.

“Hello?” he called, looking around at the “deserted” apartment. “Buck? You home?”

Natasha flicked on the light over the dining room table, giving the signal for them all to jump out.

“Surprise!” everyone shouted, and Steve stood from the crouch he’d dropped into instinctively, grinning sheepishly and lowering his shield.

“Gosh, guys, you scared me half to death!”

“That was the point,” Bucky told him, vaulting over the couch to come stand at his side. Steve embraced him, and got a very enthusiastic welcome-home/happy-birthday kiss.

“What’s all this for?” Steve asked, when they broke apart, a small smile playing across his lips.

“Happy Birthday,” Bucky said, kissing him again for good measure.

“Hey, lovebirds, get a room!” someone, maybe Tony, shouted. Bucky made a rude gesture, but pulled away.

“You did this?” Steve asked, taking in the dining room table filled with food, and all their friends surrounding them. The smile widened, edging towards the sappy smile he sometimes gave Bucky after he’d done something particularly special.

“Yep,” Bucky agreed. “Come on. It’s your birthday, and Sam made those potatoes. It’s taken all my will power not to eat them all before you got here.”

Steve laughed, and allowed himself to be drawn into the room, where everyone wished him a very happy birthday. Bucky made him sign a photo of the two of them together, but didn’t tell him why, simply handing it to Natasha, who carefully placed it in her purse. Then they were sitting down to eat, and everything was honestly perfect. Steve looked happy, talking animatedly with everyone as they passed the food around the large table. He kept looking around, like he couldn’t quite believe this was all for him, but everybody pretended not to notice. Tony and Bruce fell into an argument about the proper green bean – to – garlic ratio for his green bean thing, Pepper refereeing while munching on the dish they were currently discussing. Sam started talking to Sharon about potato recipes, while Coulson pulled Steve and Agent Hill into conversation about some obscure artifact his team was looking for. Nobody noticed when Natasha slipped out of the room.

Sometime later, Steve looked over at Bucky and twined their fingers together, giving his hand a squeeze. “Thanks, Buck,” he said. “This is the best birthday gift you could have given me.”

“Oh, this isn’t your gift,” Bucky told him with a sly grin. “Your gift should be here in…” he checked his watch, “five minutes, give or take.”

Steve blinked, grinning. “You really didn’t have to get me anything, you know.”

“I know,” Bucky said. “But, seeing as how I was kind of out of it for your last birthday, I wanted to make this one really special.”

Just then, his phone rang. He looked at the screen. Natasha, early as usual. Bucky wrapped his hand around Steve’s and tugged him back into the main room to stand before the door.

“Buck, what?” Steve asked, allowing himself to be led.

“It’s your gift,” he answered, waiting anxiously. Behind him, he could hear everyone else assembling. They’d all heard about the dog somehow, and he was pretty sure most of Steve’s other gifts would be items to help him take care of her. Bucky really wouldn’t be surprised if Tony came back the next day with an artificial leg.

Natasha opened the door and smiled at the crowd of people waiting for her. “Well, so much for a sneaky entrance,” she said, and stepped aside, revealing Kate. Someone had washed her, and tied a big red-white-and-blue bandana around her neck. Her golden fur was sleek and silky, and she wagged her tail cautiously as she saw the people staring at her.

“Oh, Bucky,” Steve breathed, crouching down and holding out a hand to the dog. Natasha unclipped the leash, and Kate moved into the room, straight for Steve. She licked his hand, just like she’d licked Bucky’s at the shelter, then pushed her head against it, demanding to be petted. Steve laughed, wrapping his arms around her. She leaned into him, washing his face, tail suddenly going a mile a minute.

“Looks like she likes him,” Natasha observed. Bucky nodded.

“Oh, Buck, she’s perfect,” Steve said, when he could finally get his face away from her ministrations. “Really, perfect.”

Bucky grinned. “Her name’s Kate. I took care of all the paperwork and vet stuff already. She’s all yours, pal.”

“Ours,” Steve corrected, still scratching Kate’s ears. “She’s ours. I- Buck, wow, I can’t believe you remembered.”

“Always said I’d get you a dog one of these days,” Bucky said. “Figured it was about time.”

After that, they opened presents. Bucky had guessed right, they were mostly things to take care of Kate. Aside from the self-filling food bowls from Pepper, they got a leash and collar, a doggy bed, dog treats, toys, and a blanket. Someone had even provided a large bag of dog food, and a dog-training manual. Steve looked a little overwhelmed, but the good kind of overwhelmed, so Bucky didn’t worry. Kate sat right between them the entire time, and sometimes their hands brushed when they reached down to pet her.

And then, it was time for the cake. Bucky went to retrieve it from the kitchen, and was rewarded by admiring noises and a wolf-whistle from Clint when he returned. He’d worked hard on this one, a three layer cake (one each of chocolate, vanilla, and chocolate-vanilla swirl- something to please everyone) he’d iced with red-white-and-blue icing, a decent facsimile of Steve’s shield done in icing on the top. Around the edges, Sharon had helped him write “Happy Birthday!” in chocolate.

Sam inserted the candles, after everyone had had time to admire Bucky’s handiwork, and they all sang Happy Birthday. Steve blew out the candles in one great breath, and cut the cake. Then it was a mad rush as everyone wanted a piece. There were one or two moments where Bucky worried someone was going to knock everything onto the floor by accident, and was amused when he found Kate watching, obviously thinking the same thing, but with more hope. Bucky elbowed Clint out of the way to get at the cake and grabbed himself two pieces- chocolate swirl for him, and vanilla for Kate (someone had once told him chocolate was bad for dogs.)

When he got back to the pup, he found that Steve had had the same idea, setting a paper plate with a small piece of cake down in front of her. He looked up at Bucky, and the two pieces of cake in his hands, and laughed.

“I guess we’re gonna have to be careful about spoiling her,” he said.

“Eh,” Bucky grinned, putting his piece down for Kate too. “She could use the extra pounds.

The party continued into the night, culminating in the annual New York fireworks display, for which they had an excellent view from the tower balcony. Bucky and Steve watched it together, Steve’s arm wrapped around Bucky’s shoulder, while Kate sat with her head in Bucky’s lap. It was a perfect moment. And then Steve leaned over to kiss Bucky’s cheek and whisper in his ear, “This was the best birthday ever.” And Bucky decided he had something to write about in his journal after all.

 

* * *

 

 

Later that night:

 

“Buck. Hey, Bucky, move your legs.”

“Mm… wha? Steve?”

“Move your legs, Buck. Mine are starting to fall asleep.”

“M’not on your legs.”

“Yes you are, because I can’t feel them.”

“Woof!”

“… Hey Bucky? I think we’re gonna need a bigger bed to fit all three of us.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> That scene with the food? Yeah, that was pure self-inflicted torture. Because I'm currently living in one of the few countries in the world that _doesn't have cheese_! So, you can imagine, all the yummy things are hard to find. 
> 
> I'm not sure where Kate came from, but I love her, and I'm keeping her. And if she were real, she could totally hog my bed all she wanted.


End file.
